bmj.com: News

German medical academics are accused of helping students obtain doctorates for cash

Medical academics are among about 100 professors in Germany who are being investigated for accepting cash bribes to help students obtain doctoral degrees. G�nther Feld, the senior prosecutor in Cologne who is leading the investigation, declined to reveal the number of medical school professors involved or to name their medical schools. But he confirmed that "several" medical school professors were being investigated and could face criminal prosecution.

Also published on 28 August:

Search engines continue to advertise rogue online pharmacies

The United States based search engines Yahoo! and Bing (Microsoft's search engine) are continuing to run advertisements for rogue online pharmacies that sell counterfeit, adulterated, or unapproved prescription drugs despite federal laws restricting advertising of drugs online. Acording to a report published on 4 August by the companies KnujOn, a security firm, and LegitScript, an online pharmacy verification company - both of which have been endorsed by the US National Association of Boards of Pharmacy - the 10 advertisers were not just in minor violation of pharmacy law.

Opposition to swine flu vaccine seems to be growing worldwide

As governments gear up to launch national vaccination programmes against swine flu, questions are beginning to emerge about how many people will be prepared to take up the offer of the vaccine. A survey published online this week in the BMJ found that just over half of 8500 healthcare workers in Hong Kong said they would not be vaccinated against swine flu because of fears of side effects and doubts about the vaccine's effectiveness. Last week England's chief medical officer, Liam Donaldson, shrugged off suggestions that NHS staff might turn down the vaccine when it is made available in the next few months.

UK has more guidance on dealing with abandoned cars than abandoned babies, study finds

Researchers have called for national guidelines in the United Kingdom on how to handle abandoned babies, after they found that only three of 170 NHS organisations have any relevant policies in place.

Also published on 25 August:

Shortfall of family doctors means US faces "absolute crisis" by 2020

A predicted shortfall of 40 000 family doctors in the United States by 2020 has sparked fears that there will be too few doctors to cope with increased demand, including that arising from Barack Obama's proposals for healthcare reform. The country faces "an absolute crisis" in the provision of primary care doctors, said Ted Epperly, president of the 93 000 member American Academy of Family Physicians, which raised the alarm.

Also published on 24 August: